


Hand Holding-Secret Santa Gift 2k19

by ghostpun



Series: Birdmen Ghost Hunters AU [3]
Category: BIRDMEN - 田辺イエロウ | Tanabe Yellow
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ghost Hunters, Birdmen Secret Santa 2019, Gen, Ghost Hunters, Ghosts, Gift Fic, M/M, Pining, fluff and plot points! yay!, hand holding, i hope you enjoyyyyy its more subtle but i tried to radiate the pining in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21949180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghostpun/pseuds/ghostpun
Summary: "Since I just spilled my love life to you, it’s only fair to ask back: what’s going on between you and Takayama?”..Here's my Birdmen Secret Santa 2k19 entry for the lovely maasimorange on tumblr! im still so honored you wanted to see my ghost hunters au as a present, so I wrote some takaeishi plot points/pining just for you <3
Relationships: Kamoda Mikisada/Sagisawa Rei, Karasuma Eishi & Sagisawa Rei, Karasuma Eishi & Takayama Sou, Karasuma Eishi/Takayama Sou, Minor or Background Relationship(s), its mentioned v briefly, which is
Series: Birdmen Ghost Hunters AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1168847
Comments: 2
Kudos: 22





	Hand Holding-Secret Santa Gift 2k19

Karasuma swirls his straw around in his drink before taking a sip. The fluorescent lights of this fast food restaurant were way too bright, but he can’t find it in himself to care all that much. By now this pit stop was just a part of the routine he, Sagisawa, and Kamoda took every day after school, since Umino was busy with sports and Takayama was always gone before the last bell even rang. 

Today, it was just him and the curly-haired teen, as Kamoda was sick for the day. He eyes his cheap, greasy, half-eaten burger before looking back at Sagisawa.

“Do you remember the day we met?”

Sagisawa snorts. “Yeah, you hated my guts.”

“I didn’t ‘ _hate your guts,’_ ” The shorter boy scoffs, “I just found you really annoying, with your fake personality and all.”

“Wow, thanks.” His friend sarcastically drawls, not finding any offense in his words. “But why do you ask?”

“Because I remembered you never answered my question: why _did_ you tag along that day?”

Sagisawa sits back, already ready to deflect: “Why should I answer when you never answered mine: why were _you_ so pressed?”

Karasuma waves the question away with his hand. “Like I said, I found you annoying. Kamoda was the only person I’d hung out with for years, and ghost hunting was one of the few times we had time to hang out, so I hated that I had to spend that with two peppy strangers. Your turn.”

“Fair enough.” Sagisawa shrugs and eats a handful of fries. “I wanted to be friends with you two.” 

“Really?” Karasuma can’t help raising an eyebrow. “You wanted to hang out with the delinquents known for skipping class and getting into fights?” He got into fewer fights than Kamoda, sure, but he had his fair share of scuffles throughout the years. It was how he befriended Kamoda, after all.

“You two seemed like really good friends...always hanging out, joking with each other, making plans for after school.” He shrugs. “I didn’t have any of that at this school. I might have been fake, but not nearly as fake as some of our classmates. I guess I was a bit envious.” He takes a sip of his milkshake a bit too nonchalantly.

Deciding to push the hesitance, Karasuma nods, asking “And that’s it?” before taking a bite of his food.

Sagisawa fidgets with the wrapper on the table while looking off to the side before mumbling “...and Kamoda’s cute.”

Karasuma almost chokes on his burger, dropping it and pounding on his chest. “Seriously?”

Sagisawa face flushes as he leans across the table to hiss: “It’s just a tiny crush! He’s tall and likes cats!!”

“You _actually_ went to a haunted site,with a gigantic fear of ghosts, just to hang out with Kamoda?”

Sagisawa mumbles, stealing a fry from Karasuma’s basket. “It turned out to be a good plan.” He pops the fry in his mouth. “I mean, now we’re all in a club!”

“Fantastic.” Karasuma deadpans. Sagisawa ignores his comment and points the cup at his friend. “Well, okay. Since _I_ just spilled my love life to you, it’s only fair to ask back: what’s going on between you and Takayama?”

Karasuma visibly freezes, trying not to blush. “There’s nothing going on between us.”

“Oh! Bullshit!” Sagisawa exclaims with a _thwap_ of the cheap, plastic table. “You’ve been practically making googly eyes since the first night.”

“Wh-‘ _googly eyes?!_ ’” His voice pitching a few octaves before lowering it back down with a hiss: “I do _not_ make googly eyes at that weirdo.”

“ _Sure_.” Sagisawa grins. “And I don’t suppose you two’s weird secret hand holding is just ‘nothing’ as well?”

Karasuma almost combusts on the spot. He attempts to say ‘ _you knew_?!’ but it comes out as more of a “yeyshdj?!”

“You guys aren’t subtle,” Sagisawa snickers as he starts to crumple up his trash. “But seriously, are you two secretly dating or what?”

The short boy slumps against his seat. “We’re not. I don’t even know if…it’s _complicated_.”

Sagisawa merely raises an eyebrow.

“Listen, I don’t feel like laboring you with the failure that is my dating life,” Karasuma exasperatingly sighs as he throws out his trash and walks to the door. “And I’m running late to my next thing anyways.” He finishes, draping on his scarf and wrapping it tight as he steps out into the cold February air.

“Oh? Where are you off to?”

Karasuma buries his face further into the scarf and mumbles something indecipherable.

“Wait, wait. Let me guess. Takayama’s place.”

Sagisawa grins when his answer is confirmed by Karasuma’s glare.

“Enjoy your date with your boooyfriend~” The taller boy teases, twirling out of Karasuma’s grabbing reach, waving with a laugh, before walking in the opposite direction to his own house.

Karasuma grumbles, ears burning from the combination of the cold and embarrassment, before shuffling on. Karasuma tries hard not to think about what just happened, before stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, vigorously shaking his hair with his hands as he inwardly screams over the whole situation. It was already complicated enough, but _now_ that Sagisawa knew, that just meant more teasing _and_ coming to terms with whatever feelings he had for the truant classmate that hung out at gravesites for fun. How’d he even get into this mess?

-2 months earlier-

Karasuma taps at his desk absentmindedly as he scowls. On the table sits his laptop and notebook, with a web page pulled up to some supernatural site, and his notebook full of nonsensical scribbles and notes. He thumps his head against the desk, grumbles as he looks over the sketches of what he remembers of the glimpse at the ghost. It was only for a second, why did he see her for only a second? What was different during that moment than anything else? Adrenaline? Injury?

He squeezes his eyes shut and replays the moment again. Kamoda yelling, Karasuma and Takayama running, holding han-

Oh.

_Oh_.

Karasuma runs a hand down his face as he scribbles down the word “contact” in his sketchbook. 

Annoyingly, he can’t prove his theory without Takayama involved.

When Karasuma looks for him, Takayama is exactly where he always is: back in the garden lot by his house, staring off into the sky. 

Karasuma glares.

“Why aren’t you wearing a jacket?l

The boy smiles as he sits up. “It’s not cold.”

Karasuma rolls his eyes and sits next to him on the ground with a _thwump_.

“I have a theory.” Karasuma starts, eyeing Takayama from the corner of his eye. “What I saw that night a couple months ago: that was the ghost, right?”

Takayama nods.

“But I only saw her for a second. So I’ve been thinking-“ he searches in his backpack before pulling out his notebook, flipping it open to the page and holding it up to the other teen. “-and I think I’ve figured it out.”

Takayama leans forward to read the scribblings in the books. “‘Contact?’”

“We were touching when I saw her..that was the only time we touched, and that was the only time I saw her.” Karasuma rushes, making sure not to blush as he avoids saying the words ‘ _holding hands_.’

The other blinks. “Makes sense.” He flashes a lopsided smile as holds out his hand, as if expecting Karasuma to take it. Karasuma stares, brain suddenly short circuiting.

“Uh.” 

Takayama cocks his head to the side. “Didn’t you want to test it?”

“Oh...right.” Karasuma clears his throat, tries to hype himself up. Just holding a guy’s hand. A cute guy’s hand. For science. That’s it.

Karasuma mentally shakes himself and slaps Takayama’s hand with his own before he can back out. Takayama doesn’t even wince at the sting of pain that results, instead adjusts his grip before nodding. He stands up, pulling Karasuma with him as they start to quickly move.

“Wh-where are we going?!”

“There aren't any ghosts here.” Takayama shuffles them both through the narrow alley between the houses, not letting go even as they stumble back onto the street. 

“What do you see?”

Karasuma blinks, leans around Takayama to search for what he’s talking about. By the end of the street, he sees two children, one glowing bright blue, the other purple, smiling as they run down the street wearing clothes way too old for this century. He follows their forms as they pass in front of the two, and he hears bells ringing in the rhythm of laughter as they turn the corner and disappear. Karasuma looks back at Takayama. “Two kids playing?”

Takayama grins. 

Karasuma can’t help but grin back.

-Present-

When he arrives at Takayama’s, he’s practically shivering from the cold. He raps his knuckles on the door to the side and waits.

With a crack and groan of the door, Takayama’s grandfather shifts the door open. The older man smiles immediately, used to seeing Karasuma showing up. He quickly ushers the teen inside, having him sit in the living room as he already starts a pot of fresh tea without asking.

“Sou is off running errands,” He explains as he pours the hot liquid into two cups. “He should be back any minute, now.” 

Karasuma ushers a soft ‘thank you’ as he takes the cup, cold fingers clinging to the warmth radiating from it. He sips, sighs in relief, then places it down on the small table, hands still holding on.

They sit for a bit with some idle small talk, but it’s mainly silent until the old door creaks open once more and Takayama steps into the home, holding a bag of groceries against his chest as he shuts the door with his other hand in a swift motion.

“I’m back,” He starts to say, looking up to see his grandfather and Karasuma sitting nearby, which causes his mouth to twitch into a smile. “You’re early.”

Karasuma takes another sip of his tea. “Hanging out with Sagisawa went quicker than usual.”

Takayama hums instead of answering, setting the groceries on the kitchen counter. “Ready?”

“Yeah,” Karasuma gets to his feet, thanking Takayama’s grandfather for the company, before walking over and putting on his coat. Takayama chats with his legal guardian, before briskly moving over to Karasuma, slight embarrassment on his face from whatever his grandfather said. He lightly pushes them both out the door before Karasuma can think to ask about it, and the cold February air slams into Karasuma’s body, causing him to shiver and grab his gloves, which he neglected to put on before.

They walk for a bit, cars zooming past on the main roads. Karasuma spots a couple cats playing next to some apartment building, and stops to snap a few pictures to show Kamoda later. 

By the time they arrive at the cemetery, the sun has already set for the day. The graveyard is silent, and Karasuma stands at the opening and looks out at all the grave markers. He’s passed by this cemetery a few times, but never really paid much attention.

He watches Takayama move around the graveyard with ease, making prolonged eye contact at certain spots, quietly spouting a few words as he goes along. Karasuma doesn’t want to think about how many ghosts fill up this plot of land, and he doesn’t know how to feel about Takayama’s complete ease with what must no doubt be a kaleidoscope of colored spirits milling about.

Karasuma walks after, pulling out his notebook for some sense of comfort. Finally catching up with Takayama, he pauses in front of his crouching friend.

The slab of gravestone was nothing special, similar to the countless others found in the cemetery. A young girl's name, Koharu Ito, is engraved.

Takayama offers his hand, and Karasuma doesn’t hesitate to take it and crouch down beside him.

He blinks a few times, before his eyes adjust and focuses on the 6 year old girl sitting on her gravestone. A pink hue covered her entire self, as if everything about her had been dyed different shades of soft pink. Her clothes were modern, a simple dress with a pocket in front, with a striped shirt to match.

The girl looks nervously around, plays with the hem of her dress, before cupping her face to whisper something to Takayama. He glances at Karasuma before looking back at her. Takayama smiles softly, whispers something back that makes the girl visibly relax. Karasuma watches the moment without a word, though his heart flutters at the sight of Takayama’s soft smile, and how kindly he reassured the distressed girl. Karasuma blames Sagisawa for placing thoughts in his head.

Takayama taps on his held hand with his thumb, shaking him out of his thoughts. Right. He was here for a reason.

He grabs his backpack, putting his notebook away to instead grab onto the small form of a slightly dirty stuffed rabbit. He brings it out, immediately met with a gasp from the young girl. Karasuma holds it out, letting her inch closer to look. She inspects it, checking it over until she spots the large red button on his chest, then breaks into a big grin. She reaches out, gently taking the pale blue toy out of Karasuma’s outstretched hand, before holding it up, grinning even wider, before hugging it. She laughs, cheerful and relieved. It rings like a million little bells, as she spins the doll around. Karasuma watches the blue doll slowly turn pink, matching the girl. 

“Thank you.” She beams, the ends of her shoes starting to turn white, scattering like snowfall. “Thank you _so_ much.” She lifts up her stuffed rabbit’s arm so that it looks like he’s waving, and by now the white snow has taken most of her body, and she disappears with one last shimmer of white and pink.

Takayama looks at the spot where the girl had floated mere seconds ago, his face neutral except for the slight shine in his eyes. 

Karasuma can’t help but stare, feelings moving around in him like bouncing balls in his chest. He’s sure his face is making some sort of expression...maybe that’s what Sagisawa meant by ‘googly eyes.’

Takayama turns toward him, his eyes still that vibrant red. “Thank you, I don’t know how I would’ve found her rabbit without you.” 

Karasuma forces himself to look away, clears his throat before he speaks: “It was nothing, really. Anything to help.” He stands up, breaking his hold on Takayama’s hand. The bright colors all around the graveyard fade out, and the cemetery is normal once again. 

He refuses to admit he already misses the warmth. 

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to state here that at this point in the fic/au...takayama and eishi wont get together for another year
> 
> (happy holidays!!!)


End file.
